ELYSIUM • G. WEASLEY

TEN

George and Iris hadn't talked about what they were, what their dates and their kisses meant, but that didn't prevent them from keeping on doing those things, acting like a couple more and more each day. About twice a week, Hermione would find George in the apartment she shared with Iris, the two of them in Iris's bed, watching a movie, sometimes awake, others asleep with the movie still playing. When George wasn't over then Iris went to him to keep him company. Hermione was starting to get suspicious but every time she had questioned Iris she hadn't received a straight response, and so she had stopped asking.

Tonight was no different. Iris had found her way in George's apartment this time, defying the rainy weather to reach him. She had memorized the code that led to Diagon Alley by now and she knew what door to take to get to the Leaky Cauldron, even though each time she debated with herself over which door she should open – she guessed the muggle repellent charms worked well enough, having her second guessing her decision.

Now she no longer needed Hermione to get her inside she could bring whatever she wished in George's apartment. The man behind the counter in the Leaky Cauldron had started to recognize her although they didn't have the level of familiarity to be questioning things yet and so he only sent her a curious look when he noticed her passing through the shop, holding about half a dozen mugs.

And this was how George saw her a few minutes later, holding the mugs with one hand, an umbrella that was soaked in the other hand. Her hair was slightly damp from the rain that had managed to reach her despite the umbrella but there was a bright smile on her lips nonetheless. The sight of it had George pausing and he almost didn't notice the mugs she was holding with one hand. He noticed only after taking a second look.

"Iris, what are those?"

"Mugs," she chirped, her smile never fading. "I noticed you didn't have many and they were on a discount in the market so I brought them for you."

George's confusion didn't lessen as he moved to the side, letting her pass in his apartment. "Thank you, I – did you walk all the way here? In the rain?"

"I took the bus for a while, then walked to the Leaky Cauldron and from there walked here, yes," she admitted, placed her umbrella in the special place reserved for umbrellas George had put next to his door, then took off her shoes so as to not bring mud into the house. She put on the slippers George had reserved for her in his apartment—a pair he had urged her to bring over some time ago—and headed to the kitchen. He shook his head at how unbothered she seemed, marching into his apartment as if it were her own. He closed the door after her.

"You could have asked me to pick you up."

"When?" she asked, shot a look at him over her shoulder. "It was a decision made on the whim of the moment. Was I supposed to send you an owl and wait half an hour until it flew over to you and then wait for your reply? That's much too time consuming for my likes, patience is not one of my virtues."

"Apparition takes a few seconds. You would have arrived here a lot quicker than you did now."

"I could arrive by myself, though, on my own," she shrugged, headed right for the kitchen. George followed after her.

"I never said you couldn't – wait, you brought me blue mugs? Iris, do you own anything that isn't blue?"

"Plenty of things, actually," she shrugged as she kept on opening the mugs. It was a set of six. Without asking, she started to wash them in the sink. George knew better than to disturb her. Instead, he leaned against the counter beside her as he let her do what she wished.

"So it was coincidence you brought me these mugs?"

"Not exactly coincidence, no," she admitted, didn't look up as she continued washing the mugs. "I could choose a red set or a pink set instead of a blue one, but you see, the mugs are midnight blue and that's my favourite colour. I couldn't not choose them, it would be like betraying them."